Hunter and Prey
by Tan-is-a-fan
Summary: Sequel to 'Into Darkness', unfinished. This story picks up 3 months after the end of that story. The gang has been working together ever since their escape, but now they will find themselves facing an enexpected enemy... Chapter 5 of 8 up.
1. Chapter 1

**Note: This is a sequel to 'Into Darkness' so you should really read that first or you'll be a bit lost.**

_Title_: Hunter and Prey  
_Author_: Tanisafan   
_Characters_: Angelus, Drusilla, Fred, Wes, Gunn, Spike and Faith. Maybe some Buffy guest stars.  
_Owner_: None of this is mine. All characters and concepts are property of Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy Inc. So this is totally unofficial material. The complete storyline is mine though.   
_Rating_: R for strong violence, language and kinky flirty stuff :). Might still turn NC 17 but in that case I'll post a censored version here.   
_Status_: Unfinished. This is a sequel to 'Into Darkness' so you should really read that first or you'll be a bit lost.  
  
The little girls were standing by the edge of the basketball court in downtown Los Angeles, hopping from one foot to the other and blowing their hands to protect them from the cold December wind that was sweeping the streets. The days were short and no-one in California was used to this kind of weather.  
  
"Come on mom," Kayleigh, the oldest girl muttered under her breath. She glanced at her little sister who was looking increasingly teary-eyed. It was six pm and the sisters were waiting for their mother. She's probably working late again, Kayleigh thought.  
  
"Hi there. Anything wrong?" a young woman suddenly said. The older girl looked up and smiled at the kind brunette.  
  
"No, we're fine. We just finished basketball practice so our mom will be here any minute to pick us up," the blonde girl said while she kept peering down the empty street. She was a bit suspicious of any stranger, especially since she had her little sister Carol to look after. The young woman smiled.  
  
"Would you like me to wait for her with you? The streets aren't safe for little girls these days..." the brunette asked, and for a fraction of a second there was a strange glimmer in her eyes, that made Kayleigh's heart skip a beat.  
  
"Uhm, no we'll be fine, thank you," she said firmly but politely. The young woman just smiled and sat down next to Carol on one of the benches at the courtside. Kayleigh walked over instinctively and sat down in between the woman and Carol. Come on mom... she thought despairingly.  
  
"I was just on my way to grab some food, you could come along if you want?" the brunette said sweetly. Carol looked up happily, she'd been hungry since halfway through practice.  
  
"Oh Kaye can we?" she said with pleading eyes. Kayleigh looked at her watch. It was already well past their usual dinner time, and she was getting terribly hungry as well...  
  
"No sweetie." she said firmly, suddenly decided upon her answer. "Mom will be here any second. Imagine how worried she'll be if we're not here.". The younger girl seemed to accept this as a valid reason and leaned back resignedly.  
  
The young woman on the other hand clenched her jaw, her friendly smile dissipating like melting snow. Her eyes suddenly looked as if they were about to shoot fire and Kayleigh shivered. She suddenly was very aware of the fact that it was nearly completely dark. The cold wind was blowing candy wrappers and flyers around their heads.  
  
"Are you sure?" the woman said with a smile that was clearly forced. Slowly she got up and turned to the basketball court.  
  
"Too bad. Guess I'll be the only one who gets a nice dinner tonight..." she said, apparently to herself.  
  
Suddenly the young woman snapped her head round and Kayleigh's breath choked in mid-throat. Vaguely, she heard Carol scream right next to her ear, but all she could see was the woman standing in front of her. Her face was all wrinkled around the forehead, and the smile she had flashed before now showed a set of pointy teeth with two large fangs.  
  
Kayleigh gasped, and instinctively got up and stood in front of her sister. The brunette let out a growl and grabbed her by the throat, lifting her up as if she were one of the candy wrappers the wind was playing with.  
  
"Carol, run!" the blonde girl screamed as she was lifted into the air, but her sister was frozen to the spot. The woman just smiled and with a growl, brought her face to the girl's neck. Kayleigh closed her eyes and held her breath, as if that would help her. But suddenly she heard a new voice.  
  
"Hey hellbitch, try picking on someone your own size!" Immediately, Kayleigh felt the grip on her throat being loosened and she fell to the ground. Wincing in pain, she scrambled away from the monstrous woman. Looking up, she saw a young African American standing a couple of feet away, holding a crossbow which was pointed at the woman's back.  
  
"Yo kids, this way!" he yelled. Kayleigh scrambled to her feet and, grabbing Carol's hand, hurried over to him. Holding each other close, they stood next to him while the brunette turned around, hissing.  
  
But when he saw her face, the determination on the young man's face was suddenly replaced with a shocked expression. Slowly, he lowered the crossbow and squinted to look at the woman's face through the darkness.  
  
"Fred?"


	2. Chapter 2

"This place is great," Faith said, standing in the middle of the hotel lobby, slowly turning around with her hands on her hips. "Wes does have good contacts." she told Spike, who was standing next to her.  
  
"Well, I'm not sure these contacts want him to live. Place looks like it can fall apart any second." the blonde vampire answered with a frown, while he looked at the ceiling. Suddenly they heard voices coming from the entrance. Wes and Gunn came walking in, deep in conversation.  
  
"And you're absolutely sure it was her?" the former Watcher asked, a worried expression on his face.  
  
"I'm telling you it was. I mean, it was dark, and she ran off as soon as she saw me, but I'd bet my life on it." Gunn said.  
  
"What are you two going on about?" Spike asked while lighting up a smoke.  
  
"Fred." Wesley saw the confused expression on Faith and Spike's faces. "Gunn went out on patrol tonight and he, uh, ran into her..."  
  
"But she's dead. We saw her get killed," Faith said tentatively. Wesley looked at her with a grim expression on her face.  
  
"Exactly. She is dead," he said, "but it appears that Angelus has, uh, has turned her. She's a vampire..."  
  
A silence filled the room.  
  
In the mansion on the other side of the city, the door slammed shut. Angelus opened his eyes and with a smile, he turned to Drusilla, who was ripping white roses into little shreds with a content smile on her face.  
  
"Our girl is home," he said with a smirk, and got up just as Fred entered the room. "I'm assuming the hunt didn't go well?" he asked her.  
  
"Have you been very naughty?" Drusilla asked happily. Fred glared at both of them.  
  
"No, the hunt was great. These two little girls..." Fred sat down on the velvet couch and sighed. "They were so pretty. I was gonna bring them home to you as a present, but then I ran into Gunn..." she said, her voice trembling with rage.  
  
"Did he recognize you?" Angelus asked coldly. Fred snapped her head round to face him.  
  
"What do you think?" she snapped. "I ran off before he got a good look, but he's not an idiot."  
  
"Great Fred, so now they know you're still alive," Angelus said angrily. "I told you not to draw any attention to yourself just yet. It wasn't even fully dark!"  
  
"Tsk. Now now, no quarrelling..." Drusilla said in a soft but confident voice. She took Angelus' hand and walked up to Fred, who got up from the couch reluctantly. "Kiss and make up..." she added.  
  
"Dru's right, we shouldn't be fighting. I promise I won't go out again tonight," Fred said. Angelus smiled. He pulled Fred close and kissed her passionately. She moaned longingly when he finally pulled away.  
  
"I know, I'd rather not fight with my girls either," he said, tracing the curve of her neck with his fingers. "Me and Dru will get you something nice to eat later, okay? We've got more than time enough to deal with our so- called foes. Besides, it's not like they know anything."  
  
"So, what do we know?" Faith said as she hopped onto the desk. "Why did he turn her? What're they up to?"  
  
"Well, from what I know of Angelus, I presume that he would want revenge because she killed Darla. Add to that the fact that after Darla's death, he would want a new mate, and Fred's brilliance, and it's pretty clear why he sired her," Wesley said with regret in his voice.  
  
"Yeah but making someone live forever? Doesn't sound like much of a revenge if you ask me," Gunn said with a shrug. "But I guess she is dead, technically... Anyway, Fred isn't much of a killing machine, is she? I mean, she was just this sweet, quiet girl..." he added.  
  
"Those are the ones you have to look out for," Spike said. "These repressed types, people who bottle everything up... When they get a taste of the dark side, there's no tellin what they'll do. You know what they say about still waters. I wasn't exactly terrifying before I became a vampire either. Now look at me," he said with a smug grin.  
  
"He's right. I'm shaking in my boots just lookin' at him," Faith said sarcastically. Wesley rolled his eyes.  
  
"We have a serious situation here people," he said. "Angelus and Drusilla were among the cruelest creatures that ever walked the earth. They won't be content with feeding and killing, like others of their kind."  
  
"Yeah, that was always their problem," Spike interjected. "Couldn't just be happy killing and maiming like the rest of us. No, he was always bloody well going on about the end of the world -and she'd be imppressed with that, of course. Arrogant wanker..." he muttered.  
  
"Exactly. And while you can rest assured that our heart bleeds for your loss," Wes said dryly, "I think it's safe to assume that this time will be no different. And with Fred's knowledge on their side, they have another powerful weapon in their hands...  
  
"Okay, I might be asking the stupid question here, but can't we give Angel and Fred their soul back? I mean, it's possible, right?" Faith asked.  
  
"I've thought of that too," Wesley said after a short silence. "But it's not an option. Even if we had everything we need for such a powerful spell, it would be too dangerous for everyone involved. We should keep in mind that the gypsies who re-ensouled Angelus, did this as a curse which nearly destroyed him. Angel was already sort of used to this sudden change when Willow reinstated his soul, but if we tried the spell on Fred, it might destroy her, both mentally and physically."  
  
"So, that's a no huh?" Gunn said with a frown. "Great. So what do we do?"  
  
"We, uh, stop them," Wesley said, faltering. "They've been lying low for too long They're up to something, I'm sure of it. So..." The former Watcher paused, looking beat. "I say we stop them, and kill them..." 


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Fred looked up. Angelus and Drusilla would be back from the hunt soon. She never heard them enter the building, they were too quiet even for another vampire to hear, but by now she had learned to sense them. She could feel their presence a block away, and when they entered the mansion, their scent had already overwhelmed her. They smelled of blood and roses...

Fred closed her eyes and smiled to herself. As she stretched herself like a cat and got up from the couch, Angelus and Drusilla walked into the room.

"Hello my darling," Angelus said, and kissed her. He was always very nice when the hunt had gone well. Glancing over her Sire's shoulder, Fred saw Drusilla drag in an unconscious young woman by the hair.

"We brought you a present," she said with child-like enthusiasm, dropping her victim onto the wooden floor. "Are you happy with it?" Fred nodded and smiled as she walked up to Drusilla.

"It's a great present Dru, I'm very happy with it." she said kindly. She turned around to Angelus and smiled at him too, her eyes glinting. "Thanks. Do you guys want a bite?"

"Nah, this one's all for you babe," her Sire said with a mischievous smile. He went over to stand right behind her, and snaked his arms around her waist. She closed her eyes in exstacy as he spoke softly into her ear. "I'm off to bed. Join me later?" As Fred nodded, her eyes still closed, he let her go.

Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked at the young woman who was lying still on the floor. Drusilla was stroking her cheek in obvious delight. She grinned at Fred as the slender brunette kneeled next to her.

"Ooooh, will there be games tonight, then?" Drusilla glanced at her knocked out victim. "She will scream, I can hear it singing in my head..." Softly, she touched her temples with her fingertips.

The young woman on the ground was beginning to stir. Without an another word Drusilla got up, took Angelus' hand in hers and together they walked into the bedroom. The door closed behind them, and with a contented smirk, Fred was left alone with her victim.

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At the hotel, Wesley, Gunn, Spike and Faith were slumped down in the moldy sofas that stood in the centre of the empty lobby. They were all looking resigned. Gunn glanced at the window.

"Sun's coming up," he said softly, "so hunting's pretty much out of the question right now. What's the plan?"

"We have to figure out what they're planning. I assume that implies hitting the streets, interrogating some of our underworld snitches," Wesley said, cleaning his glasses. Spike lifted an eyebrow and smirked.

"Yeah 'course, that's a bloody smart plan," he said sarcastically. When he saw the glares the others were giving him, he rolled his eyes and continued. "Right. So, being a little lowlife demon, and knowing Angelus' and Dru's reputation, you'd help the people who kill you for a living, and risk Angelus finding out and making you wear your ribcage as a hat?"

Faith shrugged. "Hate to say it, but he's got a point." Wesley just rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration. Then he looked up.

"Fine. Research it is, then... Faith, would you mind getting the Turner and Hawkes volumes from the office?" Wesley said with a sigh. Faith raised her eyebrows.

"What, am I your secretary now?" she said with a frown, but she got up without further muttering. She disappeared into the small office behind the counter and came back out a minute later, carrying a stack of books three feet high. The Slayer put down the volumes on the coffee table and fell back in the sofa.

"Right. Let's start with prophecies. I'd like to be aware if there's an Apocalypse announced any time soon. If there is, there's every chance our vampire trio is about to cause it," Wesley said as they picked up one of the big, dusty books.

"Great, we're Scoobies now..." Spike muttered under his breath as they all started flipping quietly through the pages.

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Quietly, Fred opened the bedroom door and walked past the bed, where Angelus and Dru were fast asleep. When Fred closed the door with a soft click, Drusilla slowly opened one eye and closed it again, like a true predator. The slender young woman smiled as she walked over to the water bowl on the dresser and started washing the blood off her hands and forearms.

When she was done, she slowly slid into the bed. Without opening his eyes, Angelus slid an arm around her waist and pulled her closer.

"What did she know about the Sigil?" he said. Fred let out a deep, almost disappointed sounding breath.

"Nothin' really. I played out all my tricks but she didn't have anything to tell me. And she never will again," she added contently.

"Not to worry my sweet, we'll get what we want in the end, like we always do. You're my precious little genius, you'll figure it out..." Angelus added. Fred just smiled and closed her eyes.

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Six hours later, Wes jumped up as Faith slammed an enormous 18th century grimoire onto the coffee table, as an obvious sign of her frustration.

"What's the point? Do we even know what we're looking for?" she asked. Gunn leaned back and sighed.

"She ain't wrong. Can't we go out and get information the regular way? By beating up the baddies?" he said. Wes sighed.

"We could, but I believe Spike was right. Most demons won't be overly keen to share what they know, and risk Angelus finding out about it," the former Watcher replied, cleaning his glasses with the sleeve of his shirt.

"So what?" Gunn said. "We'll just tell 'em that they got an option. Either they don't tell us and die slow and painful deaths, or they play nice and share, and we kill 'em quickly..." he added, shrugging.

"Well, that's hardly ethical. But I suppose it will work, since most demons only understand violence," the former Watcher said, looking tired. "Very well. The three of you can go and try to find out whatever you can, I'll stay here and continue our research. I don't quite feel up to going out yet..."

Faith glanced at the Englishman's leg. There were blood stains on his trousers. Some of the old wounds wouldn't heal properly, and she'd noticed that some of them started bleeding again when he was frustrated or emotional. Which happened a lot.

"I"ll stay here and hang out with Wes. It's harder to focus on the demon torture when the cops are on our tails – so you guys are gonna have to have fun without me," the Slayer said with a smirk.

"Suit yourselves," Spike said with a bored shrug. He got up, grabbed his old leather duster and followed Gunn out the door. After a short silence, Faith got up and headed for the office.

"Coffee?" she asked. "Or are you a tea kinda guy?"

"Coffee will do fine, thank you," he replied. He watched her disappear into the office, and re-appear a few minutes later with two steaming cups of coffee in her hands. Taking one of the cups from her, he looked at the Slayer with interest as she flopped back into her chair.

"So... You give up the opportunity to kill demons, which is after all your destiny, to spend your time researching with the Watcher who failed you in the first place..." he said, looking at her over his cup of coffee. Faith just shook her head and smiled.

"I think I failed you more than the other way around. You didn't go off to kill a buncha people, now did ya?" the Slayer replied, showing one of her patented smiles. Wesley smiled back, softly.

"You really are an extraordinary young woman..." he said.

"There's a lot about me you don't know, Wes," Faith replied with a small smirk. Then, both turned to their drinks, and a silence filled the hotel.

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TBC


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"Oh no you don't," Spike grumbled to a green-skinned Kavirrash demon, grabbing hold of its neck as it tried to flee, and threw the creature back onto the ground.

"Now start talkin'" the vampire added while he slammed the demon's head into the pavement a couple of times. It squealed, but looked back at Spike and Gunn defiantly.

"Never! You'll have to cut out my heart first!" he spat. Gunn looked at him, disgruntled.

"Oh... Well, if you insist," he said with a shrug. He took his pocket knife out of his jacket and tossed it to Spike, who flicked it open with obvious delight. The green demon turned slightly pale at the sight of Spike's patented smirk and winced.

"Okay, I'll talk, I'll talk! What do you want? I'll tell you everything I know!" the Kavirrash cowered. Spike looked slightly disappointed, but he reluctantly closed the pocket knife again anyway.

"Alright then. Angelus, Dru and Fred. What are they up to mate?" the vampire said. The Kavirrash turned even paler, glanced at Gunn and then back at Spike.

"What? Who? I-I have no idea who you're talking about. Never heard of 'em - sorry!" the creature stammered and tried to clamber back onto his feet. Spike rolled his eyes and threw the demon hard into the nearest wall.

"Now, let's try this again, shall we?" The blonde vampire said as he forcefully pulled the Kavirrash's head back. Thick black blood oozing from a large cut on its forehead. "The vampires. We know they're up to something. What is it?"

"They're looking for the Sigil," the demon said trembling. "It's all over town. Th-they need to find it, and soon." Spike looked at Gunn, who was looking just as confused as he was.

"That Sigil -what is it, and what's it do?" Gunn asked the demon. The Kavirrash looked at him as if he'd just asked what the purpose of a spoon was.

"It's a ring, of course. To unlock..." The creature coughed, spitting out some blood. "... Perinfamis pyxagathi..." He coughed again. Spike shook him in frustration.

"And what's that in English? Huh?" Gunn said angrily. "Stupid-ass demons, always with the Latin," he muttered.

Suddenly, a whistling sound passed by his left ear, and the next second he saw that an axe had split the Kavirrash's head clean in half. Its body fell limply to the ground.

Spike and Gunn's head snapped round. On the rooftop across the street, they could clearly make out Angelus' face, smirking down at them. Without a word, he jumped down, landed softly on his feet and disappeared into the darkness. Gunn scratched his head, still a bit overtaken.

"That was unexpected. I think he's actually even scarier when he's not making with the snide comments," he said. "C'mon, let's get back to the hotel and tell them what we found out."

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Angelus slammed the door shut and stalked into the mansion. Both women looked up at the same time and smiled at him.

"Well, they know we're after the Sigil, which means our good buddy Wes is gonna figure out what it's for by the end of the day. Girls, we can't waste any more time." He told them, still showing his anger though his vampire face. Drusilla just gave him a beaming smile. "What, Dru?" he snapped.

"We got you a present," she cooed, and turned to Fred. "Shall we give it to him? It's not his birthday, but it would make him so happy, my sweet little Angel..." Fred just nodded.

"Yeah, I think we should, Dru. It would put him in a better mood. I don't like him when he's all cranky," she said with a smile. Drusilla giggled and walked up to Angelus, placing her closed fist in front of his face. When she opened it slowly, a large bronze ring appeared in the palm of her pale hand.

"Does this make you happy my sweet?" she said, her dark eyes looking up at him. He slowly took the ring out of her hand and turned it around in front of his eyes. A smile crept onto his lips.

"The Sigil... Where did you girls get this?" Angelus said, shifting back into his human appearance. "There's blood on the inside..." he muttered, mostly to himself as he examined the ring more closely. Fred and Dru giggled, and his patented smirk appeared on Angelus's face. "Well, my girls can have their own fun... The important thing is that we've got the Sigil. Now all we need is the Scroll with Seven Seals, and we can let the good times roll... How's the reconstruction going?" he asked Fred. The young vampire breathed a sigh.

"I'm close. I've managed to translate the text, but without the seals we might as well whistle a jaunty tune for all the good it will do. On the plus side..." she said. Then, she looked back up into Angelus's eyes, and a glint appeared in her eyes. "I remember where it's kept."

"Where is that?" Angelus replied with a frown. Then, he saw the devilish look in Fred's eyes, and a smile tugged at his lips.

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"What did you mean before?" Wesley said, suddenly looking up from his book.

"What now?" Faith mumbled, concentrated on a passage in the Carmelian Codex. Suddenly, she blinked and shut the book, looking up at Wesley with a grin. "Hey, check it out, I was engrossed in a book! What were you saying?"

"Before, you were saying that I don't know everything about you. What did you mean?" the Englishman said.

"Hah! Wouldn't you like to know!" Faith said with a grin. Her former Watcher just lifted his eyebrows and looked at her. For a moment, both were quiet. Then, she became uncomfortable and shrugged casually. "Long story. Not half as interesting as you'd think. Plus, there's stuff I don't know about you, too. I mean, you seemed to be pretty close with Fred..." Wesley didn't say anything, but a hurt look appeared on his face, and Faith immediately felt guilty for bringing her up. "Oh, sorry, Wes, I didn't mean to..."

"No, that's alright," he interrupted a little too quickly. He looked at her and smiled reassuringly. Had she always had these magnificent eyes, he found himself wondering...But before he could say anything else, Gunn and Spike came running in.

"Sigil..." Gunn said, a bit out of breath. "They're looking for something called the Sigil. It's a ring that unlocks something, that's all we were able to find out."

"Yeah, we had a surprise guest who thought it was amusing to cut our source's head in half," Spike muttered, kicking a chair to vent his frustration.

"The Sigil? Are you sure?" Wesley said in a hushed voice, looking from Spike to Gunn.

"Pretty damn sure. Plus, he said something else. Uhm, perinferus something?" Gunn said, frowning uncertainly. Wesley nodded and quickly started leafing through one of the books.

"Yes that would make sense..." the Englishman mumbled, pausing at a page that showed a medieval engraving. "I know what they're after," he suddenly said, looking up at the others. He started pacing around for a few seconds, then turned and faced Gunn.

"This is very important. Do you know if they already have the Sigil?" he said, sounding increasingly nervous. Gunn glanced at Spike and they both shrugged. "Right... Well, we need to know if they have everything they need for their ritual. Uhm, they would also need the Sacred Scroll, yes..." he continued, mostly talking to himself by now. Faith, Gunn and Spike exchanged some nervous glances, but kept quiet until he would explain what was going on. After what seemed like forever, Wesley took a deep breath and turned to the others.

"Right. They need the Scroll with Seven Seals. Some time ago, Fred and I unearthed it from a hidden crypt and hid it, which means she knows where it is," he said. Faith frowned.

"Which is... where exactly?" she asked tentatively.

"A niche in a small room in the city archives. It's a public building so they won't need an invitation. We need to get there as soon as possible, and find out if they have already taken the Scroll. If they get both the Sigil and the Scroll, they can do the ritual at any given time, so we must make sure we beat them to it..." he rambled on, grabbing his coat. As he started to walk outside, the others quickly followed.

"So, any plans on filling us in any time soon?" Spike said.

"Oh," Wesley said with a sigh, "it's the end of the world." The vampire rolled his eyes and muttered something about clichés.

"And the Latin thing? Perinferius something-or-other?" Gunn asked as he caught up with Wes.

"Perinfamis pyxagathi. It means 'the most infamous and skilled warriors'," the Englishman explained. "They're summoning the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse..."

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TBC


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"So, by 'end of the world', you mean..." a curious Faith asked her former Watcher, as the four of them hurried their way along the windswept L.A. streets. Wesley looked at her.

"Well, technically the world wouldn't end. But the Four Horsemen would bring Death, Conquest, Famine and War to the world. Millions of people would die, everyone would suffer unbearably... The human race itself would become weakened, threatened..."

"... And the vampires and demons would have the time of their un-life, strolling through the chaos like it was a huge salad bar," Gunn finished his sentence. "Yeah, that's bad..." Spike frowned and glanced back at Wesley.

"And so you hid this scroll-thing, which is bloody dangerous and causes the Apocalypse, in a public place where people actually come to read old texts?" the vampire said with a lifted eyebrow. "That's not very stealthy, is it?" Wesley let out an annoyed breath as they turned the corner. Near the end of the avenue, the huge city archives building appeared, pitch black against the dark blue sky.

"It's walled in, Spike. The hiding place is invisible to the eye, no one can find it except me and..."

"...And Fred. And Angelus and Dru... So much for your bleedin' master plan..." Spike grumbled, equally annoyed with the Watcher. For a while, they all walked together in silence until they finally reached the large building and came to a somewhat sudden halt.

"No sign of a forced entry," Wesley observed. "It might not be too late after all..." he said. Spike however frowned suddenly and looked up, staring at the roof.

"They're here allright. I can smell them... Got in through the roof, I'd say..." he said slowly, looking at the others. "My guess is they got here a couple of minutes ago, they're probably still inside."

Two minutes later, they'd forced entry into the building and were making their way through the halls as quietly as they possibly could. Even though vampires were just as silent as other predators, they could hear footsteps echoeing from different direction.

"They want us to split up..." the Watcher whispered.

"Well, we can't, can we? English is the only one of us who knows where to find the Scroll," Gunn whispered back.

"I don't think they have it yet, or they wouldn't be going out of their way to distract us. We should just take them out and get the whole thing over with," Faith interjected.

"Faith's right. Why don't we head for the main hall, try to stop them from reaching the Scroll. Spike and Gunn, you two sweep the hallways," Wesley said matter-of-factly, all the while glancing around for any sign of movement.

"Hey, why do I have to-" Gunn and Spike both objected at the same time, glaring at each other.

"Shhhh," Faith interrupted them. The footsteps had suddenly stopped, but were now moving quickly in their general direction. "You two go on, me and Wes are going that way," she simply stated, pointing to one of the corridors to the right, which led to the main hall. Before he followed the Slayer, Wesley glanced at the two men.

"If you see any of our vampire friends, kill them without giving it a second thought..." he said softly. Then, they had both vanished in the black corridor.

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"May I ask why you offered to go along with me instead of Gunn or Spike?" Wesley asked. He wasn't even sure why he was posing Faith this question. Perhaps it was simply because the silence was uncomfortable, and made him hear sounds that weren't there.

"Dunno," the Slayer said with a shrug. "It just seemed like the practical thing to do. You know, Slayer and regular guy in one group, vampire and regular guy in the other. It evens out the strength."

"Right, right..." the Watcher mumbled, "that was very perceptive of you. Smart plan..." Faith grinned, unseen in the darkness.

"Plus, I just got busted out of jail and you got hot," she added casually. She was a bit disappointed that she couldn't see the look on the Englishman's face, but she was sure she could actually hear him fidgetting.

"Right..." Wesley said again. "Well, we better continue through this corridor, I know my way here pretty well but –"

"Wes?" Faith interrupted him.

"Yes?"

"Shut up." The Slayer smiled to herself as she found him perfectly in the dark. Flawlessly, her lips touched his, and she kissed him passionately. For the last month, she'd felt herself get more and more attracted to Wesley, who had changed so much since the first time she'd met him as her Watcher...

Wesley's brain was hardly registering what was happening. He kissed her, softly at first, then more intensely. She was an amazing kisser, he thought, as he slid his arms around her waist and pulled her closer to him.

"Well isn't this just the cutest thing?" Fred's voice suddenly echoed through the deserted corridor. Startled, both Slayer and Watcher turned to where the sound was coming from, but the darkness was too dense to make out anything.

"I don't know, I've seen cuter." Angelus' voice drifted towards them, too close for comfort. Faith looked around anxiously. Her Slayer night vision was not too bad, but in this pitch black corridor, it was no match for actual creatures of the night.

"Wesley, Wesley," Fred said, clicking her tongue in disappointment. "My poor Wesley. Is this the way you rebound? Making out with the first trailer trash ho that comes your way?" She let out a dramatic sigh, obviously enjoying this moment enough to draw it out. "Then again, I am a pretty hard act to follow."

"Don't I know it," Angelus snickered.

Wesley held his breath and listened closely when he heard Angelus' footsteps walking slowly in their direction. Closing his hand around Faith's lower arm, he urged her to follow him, and the both of them slowly backed away from the sound.

Angelus stopped dead in his tracks. Listening to their retreading footsteps, he let out a short, harsh laugh.

"You really don't get it, do you? You can come after us again and again and try to stop our plans, but you'll never be the hunters. You'll always turn out as the helpless little lambs, waiting for the slaughter. And when me and my girls are done, you're gonna be wishing I'd ripped your still beating hearts out."

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Gunn and Spike both looked up as a loud laugh ringed through the empty building.

"Angelus," Spike stated, turning to the direction the sound had come from.

"Yeah, and if he's this cheerful, things definitely ain't good," Gunn said softly. Without thinking twice, both of them started heading over to the direction of the sound, but they had barely taken a couple of steps when a form appeared, blocking their path. With remarkable confidence, the shape glided towards them.

"Hello, Dru," Spike said softly as the brunette stopped right in front of him. She smiled wickedly and tilted her head so her lips softly brushed his ear.

"Spike... My poor lost puppy. Do you want to know a secret?" she whispered, her eyes glinting with delight. "We're playing a game. Are you sure you don't want to play along?"

"And the insane bitch award goes to..." Gunn said, rolling his eyes. Drusilla snapped her head round, looking at him furiously.

"Shh. You can't play," she hissed. She turned back to Spike, but was immediately distracted again by the soft but familiar sound of a wooden stake being pulled out of a jeans pocket.

-----------------------------------------------------

As her eyes had gotten used to the darkness, Faith stopped and squinted her eyes. Not too far away, she could make out the form of Angelus, but Fred was nowhere to be seen. All of a sudden, she realized what was going on.

"It's a diversion... Fred's gone to get the Scroll, hasn't she?" she said, her voice echoeing loudly in the deserted hallway. Angelus snickered again.

"Well, yeah, pretty much. You know, I really don't get why everyone was always calling you stupid. You figure things out pretty quickly. For example..."

And without another word, he had made his way over to them. With one sharp blow of his fist, Wesley was knocked out and fell to the floor unconscious.

"Your boyfriend here is out cold. Which just leaves you and me. That's easy to figure out. Question is, can you figure out what's gonna happen when I'm slowly choking you to death?" the vampire hissed.

In one quick move, he had the Slayer pinned to the wall, his hand clenched firmly around her throat so she couldn't move. Slowly, he lifted her up until her feet were dangling a few inches above the tiled floor. The brunette gasped, but pulled up her legs and kicked the vampire in the stomach. The vampire groaned, but immediately felt that the Slayer couldn't use all her force in this position.

With a devilish smile, Angelus tightened his grip around Faith's throat. She weezed, losing strength with every second that passed. Her lungs were burning as she desperately tried to breathe. Finally, the vampire leaned in close.

"I told you you'd wish I had ripped out your heart," he whispered in her ear, as he felt her ragged breath stopping and her body becoming motionless. And without a moment's pause, he let the Slayer's limp body slide down onto the floor...

-----------------------------------------------------

TBC.


End file.
